S H I V E R
by Huntress of Sacred Dreams
Summary: Sun will turn to cloud. Rain will turn to snow. Life will turn to death. Healthy to sick. Strong to weak. All because of the Frozen Shivers that have captured you under their icy claws. A collab with Fiddle.Stickx.
1. The Beginning

**AN: Welcome to Shiver! A multi-chapter story written by Ivy and I. Enjoy.**

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_~Silent skies~_

_~Silent thunder~_

_~Silent rain~_

_~All will herald the arrival of the Frost~_

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The sun sunk below the horizon, shrouding the valley in darkness. Heavy, dark clouds billowed over the mountain peaks, spilling down into the valley below. No stars graced the dark sky; they remained hidden behind the dark clouds, imprisoned by their thickness.

Far below the sky, sitting on a patch of leaves staring up at the sky, sat a cat. His eyes remained focused on the clouds, watching them as they crawled across the sky. He didn't even blink when another cat materialised beside him, stars glittering in her fur.

"The first snow always brings great trouble to the Clans," she whispered. Her voice was patchy and sounded like the wind as it blew through the leaves.

"Indeed," the tom rumbled without turning to face her. "Does StarClan have anything they wish to tell me?"

The she-cat was silent for many heart beats as she stared up at the thick clouds. Her eyes blinked slowly and her breath came in shallow gasps. She was a dying soul, one whose days in StarClan were limited. But she held no fear for fading. She would finally be at peace with the world, her body would no longer be an anchor that held her to StarClan. No longer would she be burdened by the worries of the Clans she had left behind so many moons ago. She no longer gave as much love to the Clans for they were no longer home to her friends and family. They too had all joined her in StarClan. And they too were reaching the end of their line.

She barely moved as a chilling wind cut through the trees and blew across them, chilling the tom to his very bones. He shivered and fluffed his fur out, not wanting to catch a cold on this icy night.

And then, as the first snowflake of leaf bare came to rest at their paws, she spoke. _"Frozen Shivers will blanket the Clans, hidden behind a wall of snow that will leave the land barren."_

The tom tore his gaze away from the snow that now tumbled from the clouds to look at the she-cat with fearful eyes. "Has StarClan seen an enemy in the future?"

"Perhaps," she whispered sorrowfully. "But you must tell no one of this prophecy. Only when the time is right must the Clans know."

"How will I know!?"

She simply stared at the tom with sad eyes. "You will know. Trust me, Graysmoke."

And then the she-cat was gone and Graysmoke was left alone with snow gathering in his thick fur and the prophecy ringing in his ears. He rose shakily to his paws, ignoring the stiffness that resided in them. "I know you're there, Emberpaw," he rasped.

A small orange cat pulled himself out from under a gorse bush, ear tips burning with shame at being caught. "Sorry, Graysmoke," Emberpaw whispered. "Was that cat telling the truth?

"I believe so," Graysmoke replied. "StarClan never lies. Not about these things anyway."

Emberpaw tilted his head and looked at Graysmoke with confused eyes. "StarClan has lied before?"

"You have not heard the stories?" the medicine cat said. He was surprised that the small tom had not been told the tales. "Well, a long time ago, before WaveClan even existed, a few cats decided to leave the Clans and start a new life. Their old lives had been tainted with evil and blood, cursing them to the Dark Forest for all eternity. So they decided to leave the Clans in the hope that they might redeem themselves in the eyes of StarClan. The medicine cats of that time went to MoonCreek to ask StarClan if those cats would return. And StarClan told them that those cats had died." Graysmoke coughed loudly and stopped to draw in a long breath. He could feel liquid in his lungs bubbling as his coughed. "But moons later those cats 'returned from the dead' with an army of rogues. They laid siege to the Clans and many great warriors were lost because of it. StarClan had lied to the Clans by telling them that those cats had died when they had not even been injured."

Emberpaw gaped up at Graysmoke. "Then how can we ever trust StarClan if they have lied before!?"

Graysmoke smiled down at the apprentice. "Without trust there is no hope. Come on, let's head back to camp. It's cold out here." The apprentice nodded and the two cats strode back into the trees, leaving a trail of paw prints behind them.

And as the snow fell their paw prints were covered up, like the lungs of Graysmoke as liquid filled his lungs bit by bit every day.

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**AN: Prologue by: Huntress of Sacred Dreams. **


	2. Chapter 1: Warmth

Chapter One of: SHIVER

By: Ivy

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**MeadowClan: **

Leader: Snakestar- Small dark brown tom

Deputy: Darkhawk- large muscular dark grey tom

Medicine cat: Brightwillow- Dusty white she-cat with great connection to StarClan

Warriors [13]:

Squirrelnose- light ginger pelted she-cat

A: Birdpaw

Badgercloud- Silvertom with white stripes, wide one going down his back. Big paws.

A: Robinpaw

Daisyheart- white she-cat with yellow slits for eyes

Brockenear- dusty brown tom with a torn ear

A: Molepaw

Jaystripe- Dark grey almost black tom with three silver stripes on his back

Shadowpad- Night black tom

A: Dapplepaw

Eaglepelt- Large brown tom with white underbelly

Swiftdust- ligh pelted grey tom with black feet

A: Longpaw

Rabbitbelly- pure white tom with a bobbed tail and grey underbelly

Ratberry- small scarred ginger tom

Palesun- faint golden creamy white tom

A: Amberpaw-

Patchbriar- white and grey patched she-cat with forest green eyes

Pineblaze- Dark ginger tom

Apprentices[6]:

Dapplepaw- light brown she-cat with white dapple

Robinpaw- Dark ginger she-cat

Birdpaw- black and white patched she-cat

Longpaw- sandy colored tom with light ginger stripes and white paws/muzzle

Amberpaw- amber /gold she-cat

Molepaw- creamy white tom with long fur

Queens:

Blossomtooth- sleek night black she-cat with splashes of white fur. Going to birth Pineblaze's kits.

Browneye- Dark brown she-cat with one strange black eye. Mother of Rabbitbelly's kit: Thornkit:Brown tom

Elders:

Cloverwind- light dusty brown she-cat

Crowthorn – rough pelted black tom with glare in eyes

**WaveClan:**

Leader: Honeystar- Golden brown she-cat

Deputy: Iceberry-lithe pure bright white she-cat

Medicine cat: Jaymask- dark blue/grey she-cat

Warriors[12]

Barkclaw-cark brown small tom

Hawkpebble-Large brown tom, black spots

A: Ripplepaw

Beachdrop- brown and white tom

Blizzardtuft- large grey and white tom, muscular and aggresive

Foxflower- plump ginger she-cat

Rainbee- handsom ahy grey tom with white paws and blue eyes

A: Pebblepaw

Petalbranch- light ginger, white, and brown spotted hse-cat

Blueshade- dark blue grey she-cat

Firesplash- light ginger she-cat wish a splash of white on chest

Beetlefoot- nightblack she-cat with overly small foot

Cloverwind- light dusty brown she-cat

Adderleaf- brown, black and white patterned tom.

Apprentices:

Ripplepaw- small light blue/grey tom with thoughtful green eyes

Pebblepaw- small light grey bundle of fur

Queens:

Spottedmist- brown she cat with black dots. Mother of Rainbee's kits: Onekit[small brown tom with black patch over eye] Featherkit[tiny grey feathery she-kit] and Bouncekit [jet black and plump tom]

Elders:

Mistyjaw- white she- cat with greying muzzle

Spiderfur- jet black tom with grey paws

Greyfrost- pure grey tom

**CedarClan:**

Leader: Flurrystar: Gray she-cat with white throat, chest and underbelly.

Deputy: Tigerleap: Light brown tabby she-cat with a white forepaw.

Medicine Cat: Ivyfrost: White she-cat with black flecks.

Warriors:

Windrose: Dark tortoiseshell she-cat.

Raincloud: Blue tabby tom with white underbelly.

Gorselight: Brown tom with thin, wiry fur.

Eaglestrike: Smoky red tom. ;Apprentice: Silverpaw;

Dewdrop: Fawn dappled she-cat.

Icefall: Sleek white she-cat with gray forepaw.

Lionstep: Golden tom with black paws and tail tip.

Waterspark: Blue-silver tabby she-cat with black spots. ;Apprentice: Birdpaw;

Cougarfang: Light yellow tom with bold black stripes and ear tips.

Swiftwing: Black and white patched she-cat.

Badgerstripe: Black tom with a white stripe down his face. ;Apprentice: Lilypaw;

Apprentices:

Birdpaw: Tawny tom with white splashes.

Silverpaw: Silver tabby she-cat.

Lilypaw: Creamy she-cat.

Queens:

Palesun: Pale yellow she-cat. Mother to Lionstep's kits; Stripekit, Lightkit and Heatherkit.

Snowfeather: White she-cat with gray flecks. Pregnant with Badgerstripe's kits.

Elders:

Streamflower: Blue she-cat with gray streaks due to age.

Kestrelwing: Dusty brown tom with black stripes.

**DarkClan :**

Leader: Fallenstar: Black tom with heavy scarring. Blind in one eye due to scarring.

Deputy: Shadowstrike: Dark blue tom with lighter stripes.

Medicine Cat: Graysmoke: Light gray she-cat with a white forepaw. ;Apprentice: Emberpaw;

Warriors:

Nightfire: Black she-cat with orange flecks. ;Apprentice: Farrowpaw;

Stormdash: Fluffy light blue tom with a black tail tip.

Frozensky: Silver she-cat with gray paws.

Blackfur: Smoky black tom. ;Apprentice: Hawkpaw;

Volefang: Dark brown tom with lighter spotted tabby markings.

Jaggedclaw: Huge russet tom with long claws.

Frostlight: Blue-gray tabby she-cat. ;Apprentice: Leafpaw;

Littlefoot: Light calico she-cat with small paws.

Doveflight: Sleek gray she-cat with darker Siamese markings.

Apprentices:

Farrowpaw: Bulky brown tabby tom.

Emberpaw: Ginger she-cat with white paws and tail tip.

Leafpaw: Lithe silver tabby she-cat.

Hawkpaw: Faded light brown tabby tom with a black hind paw.

Queens:

Quailfeather: Small tortoiseshell she-cat. (Pregnant with Jaggedclaw's kits)

Elders:

Talonstar: Huge brown tabby tom. Retired early due to fracture shoulder blade. He used to be leader.

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**Chapter one: **

Snow had just stopped falling as the cats shuffled their paws. A chilly wind blew their fur the wrong way and they huddled close for comfort. One could smell the coldness blanketing all of them as they impatiently waited.

A golden brown she-cat bound from her den that was made from an old water cave. She took place at the front of the group and rushed out into the cool night, cats following after her.

Last to go was a dark blue-grey she-cat with a black mask of fur hiding her face. She gazed up at the sky as she slowly made her way after her clan mates. A sudden chill was sent up her spine and she stopped. She could no longer see her friends and others before her, but in the distance a lithe figure was coming her way. "To bring warmth back…" it uttered as it brushed past her.

She shook, chilled to the bone as vision on her clan mates came back. She hurried after them, gaze blank and un-focused.

"Jaymask, are you alright?" Jaymask spun around, her vision clearing.

"What, oh yea…, I'm fine Iceberry."

They reached the top of the slope, and Jaymask waited for her leader's command to race down the hill and visit with the other medicine cats. Soon, after a moment's pause, her leader gave the signal and cats came pouring into the small cavern. Honeystar joined Snakestar, Flurrystar, and Fallenstar on Highcliff, a large rock that juts out form the wall of the cavern. Iceberry joined the other deputies bellow the cliff, and she curled her tail over her paws.

Jaymask headed in the direction of the medicine cats, trying to hide the scent of fear from her pelt.

"Jaymask!" Ivyfrost greeted her. "How good it is to see you!"

Jaymask dipped her head, gazing at the other white she-cat with black flecks. Ivyfrost had always been the excited and bold of the medicine cats, and the youngest. But yet Ivyfrost seemed to know just as much. "It's good to see you too, Ivyfrost." As soon as the words flowed out of her mouth, the small talk amongst the clans began.

"So how's Emberpaw doing?" she heard Brightwillow ask Graysmoke .

A loud hiss came from Highcliff as Snakestar urged to start the meeting. He stood up and padded to the edge of the cliff. The small brown tom gazed at the cats gathered below him with yellow slits for eyes. "I have come to tell you all that CedarClan are thieves!" A loud wailing rose from both CedarClan and its bordering clan, MeadowClan. Jaymask shook her head, turning to Brightwillow.

"Your thoughts on this?" she mewed. She highly respected Brightwillow, she by far had the best connection with StarClan out of all of them.

"StarClan has shown me nothing important about this; I think it's a waste of time bringing up. What's one piece of prey going to cost us? As long as it doesn't happen again?" she turned her head to face Ivyfrost.

"Don't you go dragging me into this," Ivyfrost started, eyes narrowing. But she got cut off by another hiss from Snakestar.

"Isn't that right, Flurrystar?"

Jaymask admired how the grey and white she-cat managed to stay calm.

"CedarClan may have stolen in the past, season and seasons before you or I became leaders, but we cats have pure hearts now. And prey is plentiful in our territory, we have no need to steal." The calming mew of the leader's voice seemed to take the edge off all the fighting cats.

"I have witnesses who saw your cats crossing the border," Snakestar challenged. "Pineblaze, Ratberry, stand up."

Jaymask watched the two ginger toms stand up. Pineblaze looked scared to the bone, and he was shaking slightly. Ratberry didn't show a flicker of fear, his scared body not shivering or even slightly shaking. Ratberry looked almost glad to be telling on another clan.

"We saw CederClan cats alright. Isn't that right, Pineblaze?" Ratberry hissed.

Pineblaze took a shaky breath. "T-that's right all right," he managed to cough up.

Ratberry scanned the cats around him." Yea…we…we uh…we saw Icefall….Yes…and…uh… and Swiftwing."

"You honestly expect us to believe that?" spat Tigerleap, the fearsome deputy of CedarClan. Her tabby coat shifted as she licked her white paw. "Icefall and Swiftwing have been in camp for the last moon after sneaking out of it without permission right after our last gathering."

Jaymask watched, amused as Icefall's head dropped and Swiftwing looked around.

"Well it's what we saw," Ratberry spat.

Snakestar gave out a low growl. "Enough!" he dipped his head to Flurrystar. "Let's get this gathering over with."

Flurrystar's tail waved as she gave news of her clan; "Snowfeather will now be a queen, she's bearing Badgerstripe's kits."

The clans all cheered, and Ratberry and Pineblaze, who was looking quite astonished, were sitting, not muttering a word.

As Flurrystar nodded to Honey star, and the golden she-cat stepped forward, Jaymask eagerly looked forward. She didn't know what was going to be spoken, but it looked fairly important.

"Clans from the farthest area," she began." A small sickness has come to spread into one of our elders, Spiderrfur." Her voice rose over the soft murmurs of the cats below her. "Jaymask is trying to do everything she can, but we fear he may be too weak to make this season."

"Honeystar, I'm sorry to hear that." Fallenstar meowed to her, switching places. His strong pelt rippled and his scars shone brightly in the moonlight. His one good eye swept over the cats as he took a seat. "Everything is good here in DarkClan, for once leaf-bare is providing enough prey for our clan to survive." Shortly after speaking the last word, he bounded off the cliff and haired away, clan mates racing after him. Jaymask said a short goodbye to Graysmoke and Emberpaw and they made their way out of the cavern. As goodbyes were being said, WaveClan was the last to leave.

The words kept repeating in Jaymask's head: _To bring warmth back….._

_What could it mean? _


	3. Chapter 2: Sun

**AN: Another chapter! I've had bits and pieces of this on my mind all week so it was good to finally put pen to paper...or fingers to keys and type it out. Oh, and towards the end it gets a bit weird..Enjoy!**

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Cold winds descended upon the small den, working its way through the holes in the gorse. Within the den lay a cat, its thin frame dwarfed by the larger cat sitting by its side. The sound of wheezing gasps made the larger cat shudder as he stared down at the wasted figure of a cat he used to look up to. The weak cats pale gay fur littered the nest, a sign of the illness so feared by their small group. Blindness had crept up on the strong leader and within a moon he was sightless. Soon his nerves stopped working. And eventually he became nest-ridden, the dreaded disease grasping its cruel claws around his body.

"His time is fading faster than the clouds," a small voice whispered from the front of the den.

The larger tom hung his head. "I know, Juniper." A small cough racked his body. "How are we to know that we won't all die of this disease?"

"Clancy won't, Thunder. She had that…thing from the no furs that stops diseases such as this from attaching themselves to her. And don't forget that she carries Blaze's kits!" Juniper responded as she wrapped her tortoiseshell tail around her paws.

Thunder shook his head and scrunched his eyes closed. "This can't be happening! Ashes can't die, we need him too much!"

Juniper rose to her paws and pressed her nose to Thunder's shoulder, "Ashes is going to die. There is nothing we can do anymore."

A harsh choking sound suddenly came from Ashes as his sightless eyes went wide with pain. His chest heaved as his lungs tried to draw more breath but could not. He clawed weakly at the edges of his nest, tearing clumps of the soft grass away. Thunder's eyes rounded in fear at the sight of his leader thrashing helplessly around in his nest. "Can't we stop the suffering?" he whispered hoarsely to Juniper.

The she-cat nodded and rolled four black seeds over to him. "Put these in front of his nest and tell him to eat them. Sleep will come as will death," she replied sadly. Thunder rolled the black seeds over to the edge of Ashes crumbling nest before nudging the agonised leader with his nose.

"Eat these seeds, Ashes," he rumbled. "Eat them and all the pain will go away. I promise."

Within in moments Ashes had stretched his neck over the edge of the nest and lapped up the black seeds. His eyelids drooped and slid closed as his chest stopped heaving for air. Juniper stared at the leader with shocked green eyes. "How?" she murmured. "I only gave him poppy seeds. They should have put him to sleep, not killed him!" But the pale gray flanks of the leader didn't move and the den suddenly grew ever colder as death claimed another member of their small group.

"We have nothing left," Thunder mumbled. "It's all gone. All because of this…disease."

Juniper lowered her eyes. "The disease has a name."

"Frost Shiver."

**-000-**

Soft sunlight spiralled into the entrance of the spacious cave, creating a small halo on the ground before disappearing into the gloom of the back of the cave. Claws clinked against the rock floor as a white she-cat went about her daily business of checking the herb stores. She snared a fallen leaf that lay on the ground with one claw and put it back on its respective pile. "Yarrow leaves are good," she murmured to herself. "Juniper berries are low..as are horsetail and cobwebs."

A shadow fell across the cave entrance, alerting the medicine cat to the arrival of a possible patient. "Who is it?" she called, her voice rising and falling as it drifted from the storage cave, a smaller cave situated at the back of the main cave.

"Cougarfang," came the short reply. The she-cat groaned inwardly at the sound of the sandy yellow tom's voice.

"What can I do for you today, Cougarfang?" she chirped as she padded into the main cave.

The yellow warrior held his left forepaw off the ground in an uncomfortable position, his eyes focused on the ground and filled with shame. "I twisted it whilst trying to teach Birdpaw how to catch a bird," he said quickly. "Would you mind looking at it, Ivyfrost?"

"Of course not. It is my job to aid those in pain, no matter how the pain came to be inflicted upon them. Wait here while I mix a poultice up to put on it," Ivyfrost replied evenly. She turned away from the tom and vanished back inside her herb cave and the sounds of rustling leaves soon followed.

Cougarfang wrinkled his nose at a sudden strong smell and fought against the instinct to gag as the medicine cat returned from the herb cave with a sticky looking mess plastered over a large leaf. "Now hold still," she ordered as she began to spread the poultice over the tom's foot. He held obediently still as the sticky substance was coated over his paw. "You'll have to keep off it for the rest of the day. Come back and see me tomorrow and I'll take the poultice off."

The warrior stiffly nodded his head before retreating from the medicine cave as quick as he could. Ivyfrost watched him go with a disdainful expression. _I've never understood why other cats can't stand the smell of this cave. I personally love it! _She shook her head lightly and was about to go back to checking her herbs when a small voice caught her ear. "Ivyfrost?"

"Yes?" she replied, turning to see a small brown tabby kit. A small smile curled at the corners of her muzzle at the sight of Heatherkit.

"C-Can I help you?" the she-cat asked shyly.

Ivyfrost purred and flicked her tail at the she-kit. "You may. I was about to go out and look for herbs. Would you like to come with me?"

The she-kit's tail shot up straight and her amber eyes gleamed with excitement. "I would love to!" she squeaked happily before her face fell slightly. "But Flurrystar won't let me because I'm only a kit.."

"We'll see about that," was all Ivyfrost said as she padded past Heatherkit and into CedarClan's camp. The cedar trees that gave the Clan its name ringed the camp and threw shadows across the clearing in odd patterns and shapes. It was a welcome relief to most cats after a hot green leaf day of hunting, patrolling and training.

Flurrystar lay on High Boulder, her light gray fur blending in perfectly with the rock. "Flurrystar!" Ivyfrost called, "Would you mind if I took Heatherkit with me to gather herbs?"

The leader twitched her tail tip and raised her head to blink down at the black flecked medicine cat with calm blue eyes. "You may. But be careful, Ivyfrost. MeadowClan are bound to be hostile after last night's gathering. "

Ivyfrost's eyes darkened slightly at the reminder of the accusations Snakestar had tossed at Flurrystar, before they lightened again. The problems of border crossing and prey stealing were of no concern to her. Only when they became violent did they begin to matter. "I will, Flurrystar."

The leader blinked at her before laying her head back down and resuming her peaceful nap. Ivyfrost turned away from High Boulder and made her way over to the camp exit with Heatherkit in tow. As the two cats stepped out into the snowy forest Heatherkit let out an excited squeak and jumped into a pile of snow. The little she-kit appeared moments later with a small pile of snow on her head. Ivyfrost stifled an amused purr and grasped the kits scruff in her mouth. "Now, now, Heatherkit," she said around Heatherkit's scruff. "Stick beside me or you might get hurt!"

Heatherkit nodded and the snow fell of her head. "Yes, Ivyfrost," she squeaked.

The medicine cat put the kit on the ground and began to pad off in search of herbs. She knew where the best patches of horsetail grew. Near the stream that curved away into MeadowClan territory.

Snow began to fall from the sky as the two cats trudged through the cold forest, their pelts fluffed up to ward off the freezing wind. Ivyfrost kept a close eye on Heatherkit in case the kit decided to run off but she was too exhausted to do anything more than force her way through the growing snow.

The forest in front of Ivyfrost's eyes began to grow fuzzy and blurred, the colours mixing together to form a whirlpool of green, white and blue. From the whirlpool two gleaming amber eyes blinked open and cascaded heavy snow down on Ivyfrost. She shivered violently, out of both fear and cold at the terrible day-mare she was receiving. A curved mouth appeared from the whirlpool, lined with dozens of razor sharp teeth that dripped with snow and blood. They curled into a cruel smile.

Ivyfrost struggled to keep her eyes open as the vision grew brighter and more twisted with every passing moment. Snowy shapes of cats danced around the whirlpool before they each dropped dead and slipped into the awaiting mouth that belonged to the gleaming amber eyes. The eyes changed colour with every beat of Ivyfrost's heart. Amber, green, blue, yellow, purple, red, black and finally white. The swirling whirlpool of colours came to an abrupt stop and the mouth lined with bloodied teeth vanished along with it.

All that was left was the empty white eyes staring down at Ivyfrost in the darkness. A bright light suddenly filled the dark land that the medicine cat had found herself in. She turned her eyes to the east of the white eyes to see a glorious sun rise over the edge of the land of black. Its rays spilt over the darkness and trees sprung up around it. Ivyfrost began to recognise parts of CedarClan's territory as the sun's rays grew closer and closer to her until even little Heatherkit popped up beside her. A voice that sounded like the shattering of ice sounded beside Ivyfrost's ear. _"Follow the sun…" _

"Ivyfrost!? Ivyfrost!? Are you okay!?" Heatherkit's frightened voice brought Ivyfrost out of her trance and back to the real world.

"Huh?" she mumbled. "Oh, yes, I'm fine. We should head back to camp before this snowstorm gets any worse." Heatherkit nodded weakly and didn't protest when Ivyfrost scooped her up.

_Follow the sun…why would we need to follow the sun? And what did all those swirling shapes and strange beings mean? Perhaps StarClan is trying to warn me of a feud between Clans…_

* * *

**Chapter 2 Written by: Huntress of Sacred Dreams**


	4. Chapter 3: Horizon

Soft white clouds hung in the black night sky and a slight breeze blew across the barren land. A single she-cat stood alone on the cracked ground, knowledge gleaming in her bright amber eyes. Her dusty white pelt stood out against the night, and glowed soft silver. A sudden breeze made her aware of another cats presence.

"Why have you brought me here?" The question came out in a soft whisper, and the she-cat wasn't surprised when another cat, a tom, stepped out from the shadows. The tom was pure black, and his pelt blending in with the night sky. His pale green eyes and greying muzzle gave away his age. But in his eyes, unknown wisdom and knowledge sparkled. Brightwillow raised her head, as if asking for an answer.

The old tom sighed, but said nothing as he padded up to her. His tail touched her shoulder and she was thrown into a vision. Grief and sadness pierced her heart for some odd reason she did not know of as she watched cats mingle below her. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she understood that death was among them.

Her eyes clouded with thoughts, which soon disappeared when she was pulled away from the scene.

"I don't understand, who were all those cats?"

"My dear Brightwillow," the frail tom coughed. "Times aren't only tough for the clans you know." The old tom had a rasping to his voice, and suddenly his pale eyes glowed bright. "To where it sinks below the horizon." Brightwillow was about to ask what he meant by that, when her eyes snapped open and she found herself in her den back at the meadow. Her den, an old rabbit hole that was made larger, was still hidden in the ground. Everything was back to normal, but Brightwillow knew it wouldn't be for long.

_0_

"No! No! No!" The words were thrown at Robinpaw, and she sat up from her fighting crouch straight away. She was in the training center, a big area with an oak tree in the middle. The grass was packed down from cats walking on it throughout the moons, and it was surrounded by bushes. Robinpaw and her mentor Badgercloud were training with Molepaw and his mentor Brokenear.

"Did I do something wrong?" Robinpaw asked Brokenear, voice shattered with fear of the large tom.

"Only everything!" he spat back. She flinched and lowered her head. Ashamed, she didn't want to meet any cats eyes.

"Sh-she didn't do nothing wrong." Mousepaw tried to stick up for his friend, long fur sticking out in all directions.

"Be quite you!" his mentor spat. His cold words prickled her fur, and her gaze remained on the ground.

"Brokenear," Badgercloud's eyes were soft, but showed anger. "As senior warrior here-"

"Excuse me? Senior warrior? By only a moon!" The yowled words threw Robinpaw around, and she gave a small whimper. Her stomach turned, and she felt sick. She coughed a couple of times, and then shook her head.

"That's not the point, Brokenear, is it?" Badgercloud's soft voice comforted Robinpaw, and she allowed her dark ginger fur to lay flat on her shoulders. "Not only am I in charge here, you are ordering my apprentice around. That I will not allow. "He looked around, as if asking for anyone to challenge him. "I think we're done here." He stiffly started the way back to camp, not looking behind him.

Robinpaw padded after her mentor. She suddenly burst into a series of coughs, and stood still. Her stomach turned, and it went black around her. A heartbeat later her stomach flipped upright and the colors of the meadow around her returned. She closed her eyes, and proceeded on to camp. She gathered some moss together, and circled around it until flopping down and wrapping her tail over her muzzle.

"I'm sorry Brokenear was like that. He's been really grumpy lately." Robinpaw was surprised to hear Mousepaw's voice. She raised her head from the mossy den, and gazed him in the eyes. Instead of replying with words, a series of coughs erupted from her. Mousepaw purred, lying down next to her. "You feeling alright?" Again, Robinpaw went to nod her head but another mass attack of coughs came over her. "I'm taking you to Brightwillow." Mousepaw ordered, nosing his friend to her paws. Though Robinpaw wanted to protest, she gave up when another set of coughs made her throat burn.

By the time Robinpaw made it to Brightwillow's den, she could hardly walk. Brightwillow made sure that she was nestled in a soft nest, murmuring words of comfort to the small ginger apprentice. She then turned to Mousepaw, sniffing him. "You don't have the sickness," she murmured.

"Will she be alright?" Mousepaw's caring voice would have made Brightwillow purr with amusement, but instead she was scared. The smell of the sickness burned her throat, and it was unknown to her. Was this what the StarClan cat meant? Troubles for all the clans… The words of the prophecy repeated in Brightwillow's head, and she gave a sorrowful look in Robimpaw's direction.

"I want you to stay clear of her," she ordered Mousepaw, ignoring his question. She hated it, but she didn't have any information to offer the small apprentice.

"Bu-" Mousepaw's voice was almost pleading. Couldn't Brightwillow see that she was his friend? How could she just tell him to bug off?

"And tell me if another cat coughs, or even sneezes." She gave the cream apprentice a stern look after cutting him off. "Am I clear?"

"Yes, Brightwillow." Mousepaw hung his head, and padded back off to the apprentice den, wanting to sleep and escape this nightmare that was so real. He curled up where he had been moments before with Robbinpaw, and curled up into a tiny ball. He put his muzzle in the moss, her scent still clinging there. _Would she be alright? What kind of sickness did she have? Could it be cured? _Questions rang through his head as he closed his eyes. The sky turned black once more, and the cats of MeadowClan fell into a peaceful sleep, not to be awoken by anything.

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**Chapter 3 by: Ivy**


	5. Chapter 4: Shrouded

**AN: And I'm back. If I recall this chapter took me 3 hours. So I hope you like it. Enjoy.**

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Half a moon had passed since the gathering and the strange sickness had begun to spread further, infecting more. Tempers were flaring as blame rocketed around every Clan. Some blamed rogues and their disease ridden bodies. Others said StarClan had cast the sickness down on them for almost leaping at each other's throats during most gatherings.

However each medicine cat felt that something was different. Their minds were continuously wandering back to the strange prophecies they had each received. It confused them. Why had StarClan sent them such a confusing prophecy? Did StarClan really hate the Clans that much that they decided to cast a sickness and a riddle of a prophecy?

But Graysmoke was the only medicine cat that _hadn't _jumped to the conclusion that StarClan had cast the disease down on them. The she-cat he had spoke to the night before the gathering had confirmed to him that StarClan was terrified of the darkness coming their way.

"Graysmoke?" Emberpaw murmured. "Are we going soon? It's almost sunset."

The sound of his apprentice's voice summoned the elderly medicine cat from his thoughts. His eyes flicked from Emberpaw to the five cats curled up in his den, each looking as pitiful as the other. "Maybe. I don't really want to leave them," he replied. One of them started coughing and a painful choking sound filled the den.

Graysmoke rushed over to the blue-gray tabby she-cat and flicked his tail at Emberpaw. "Get some honey. That's all we can do at the moment to keep Frostlight comfortable."

Emberpaw nodded and bounded over to where the herbs were kept, in a large hollowed out log that had fallen into the medicine den once and never been moved. He returned moments later with a piece of honeycomb, sweet honey dripping off it. Graysmoke took the honeycomb from the ginger apprentice and dripped some of it down Frostlight's throat. The she-cat gasped for air for a few seconds and then settled down. She blinked gratefully. "Th-th-th," she scrunched her eyes closed painfully at the thought of losing her voice forever.

Graysmoke nodded sadly. "Her loss of speech is growing by the day." He nosed Frostlight's flank. "As is her fur loss." He shook his head and Emberpaw laid his tail over the elderly cat's shoulder.

"We need to go to MoonCreek. You can talk to StarClan there and ask them for help," the apprentice soothed.

Graysmoke nodded and took one last look at the sick cats in his den before he padded out into DarkClan camp. Dark pine trees ringed the small camp that homed the cats of DarkClan. The sun had already sunk halfway down the mountains that sat like tall creatures in the distance. Fallenstar sat near the gorse den that belonged to the warriors. Jaggedclaw and Shadowstrike sat with him and all had a similar expression of hopelessness. They knew of the sickness that had attacked five of their Clan mates. And they also knew that they could do nothing about it.

Fallenstar spotted Graysmoke and rose to his paws. "You are going to MoonCreek?" the leader asked. His tone was one of surprise and had a hint of anger.

"I am," Graysmoke replied evenly. "I can do no more for the cats that lie in my den. All I can do is ask StarClan for guidance. Maybe they will have an answer for us."

The black leader gave a small nod and turned away from his medicine cat, his blind eye glinting in the dying sunlight. "Let's just hope that no one dies whilst you are away." There was a hidden meaning crouched beneath his words. A threat.

But Graysmoke did not retaliate to it. Instead he simply turned away from the warriors that glared at him with death in their eyes and padded out of camp with Emberpaw at his side.

The apprentice looked up at Graysmoke with fearful eyes. "Why are they blaming us?" he whispered. "We are doing all we can."

"The Clan wants good news and a cure. They do not want to hear of more cats that have been infected. And because we cannot give them a cure they will blame us until we find one." Graysmoke looked to the stars that had begun to glow in the night sky. "It is an ordinary part of medicine cat life. A part of life that you will have to learn to survive over. I believe in you, Emberpaw. You have a strong heart. And a strong heart is what makes a great medicine cat."

Emberpaw beamed up at his mentor, relief and happiness shining in his blue gaze. "Thank you, Graysmoke."

The medicine cat simply nodded and the two continued their silent walk through the steadily darkening pine forest of DarkClan.

**-000-**

"How could you say that!?" a harsh voice spat. "You're our medicine cat! Do something!"

Brightwillow stared at Squirrelnose with wide eyes. It was frightening to see the normally calm and gentle she-cat glaring at her with raised hackles and unsheathed claws. The medicine cat swallowed nervously and opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. How could she tell a mother that her daughter was slowly dying? But she didn't want to lie either…

"I do not know if she will live," Brightwillow murmured sadly.

Squirrelnose's eyes blazed with anger and she lashed out at the medicine cat, catching her nose and creating a small cut. "Robinpaw is strong. She _will _survive this. And if she doesn't I will hold you responsible and make sure your life is a living hell." The ginger she-cat glared at Brightwillow one more before she stalked off into the tall stalks of grass that made up the meadow of MeadowClan. A single deep red rose stared at the heart broken medicine cat with silent sadness from its lonely place in the thick snow. It waved in the wind and Brightwillow stared at it with sad eyes.

"Brightwillow?" a soft voice whispered. "Are you okay?"

The medicine cat turned to see Jaymask peering from the tall stalks, her green eyes blinking in the growing gloom. Her blue gray fur ruffled in the slight wind as she pulled the rest of her body into the small rose filled clearing. The sweet smell of roses drifted over the two silent she-cats. "Brightwillow?"

"I'm fine, Jaymask," Brightwillow whispered. She refused to meet Jaymask's green gaze for the fear that she start crying.

Jaymask rubbed her muzzle against Brightwillow's shoulder. "No, you're not. What happened? I heard Squirrelnose yelling."

"She was blaming me because I can't heal Robinpaw." The two she-cats began to walk through the meadow, their paws taking them to MoonCreek and to where StarClan was waiting. "And then she clawed me."

Jaymask flattened her ears in shock. "Clawed you!? She can't do that! You're the medicine cat! Tell Snakestar, I'm sure he'll punish her."

"No. The entire Clan blames me because I don't know how to heal them. Snakestar's mate is ill. So he blames me too." Brightwillow hung her head and studied her paws. She felt like she was to blame. She'd been given the position as medicine cat so that she could heal the Clan and keep them from dying of illness. But now she could not. And she felt horrible.

Jaymask made a soothing noise. "WaveClan blames me too. But I don't let it get to me. I know for a fact that there is nothing I can do. And the Clan will realise that too eventually."

Brightwillow nodded and said no more as they left MeadowClan territory and began to follow the stream as it flowed away from the Clans. Stars began to twinkle in the sky as the trees grew closer together and shunned the sky out.

The smell of fresh mountain water floated towards the two medicine cats and they both perked up as StarClan came closer. The trees stopped and opened out into a small snow covered clearing where a creek cut through the grass and flowed away into the darkness. Three other shapes sat by the creek and each had an air of sadness around them. "Hello," Jaymask called to the others.

Emberpaw turned his ginger head to stare at the two she-cats. He had a small smile on his face and it cheered Brightwillow up. She always liked how cheerful Emberpaw was. "Hi," he purred. "How are you?" His face had fallen slightly at the sight of Brightwillow's clawed nose and sad eyes.

"Fine. You?" Jaymask replied. She had plastered a fake smile over her face but Brightwillow was certain Emberpaw could see past it. Emberpaw purred something to Jaymask and Brightwillow left them to talk to each other. She slunk over to Graysmoke and settled down beside him, dipping her paws in the cool MoonCreek water.

"You too?" Graysmoke rumbled.

Brightwillow nodded. "Yes. It's our fault is it?" she asked.

"No. StarClan knows of our pain and I am sure they will tell us something." Brightwillow shrugged and moved to where she usually sat. The others joined the two eldest medicine cats by the creek.

Graysmoke stood up and met the eyes of the others. "Tonight we will find out all we can from StarClan about this illness. We _need _to find a cure before our Clans waste away." He inclined his head and curled up on the grass, making sure that his paws touched the water. As the water lapped at his paws, Graysmoke felt his head grow light and his eyes grow sleepy. Soon his eyes dropped closed and he gave away to the pulling force that was sleep.

A soft whispering sound awakened him and his eyes snapped open to find himself surrounded by thick mist. He flicked his eyes around and found the shadowy shapes of the other medicine cats starting to stir. "Where are we?" he heard Emberpaw murmur.

"Somewhere," Ivyfrost replied.

Graysmoke ignored them and turned his eyes to where the mist was beginning to clear. The silhouette of a cat appeared and all he could see was blazing blue eyes that blinked in the thick mist. A rushing noise- like the sound of water as it poured over a waterfall –reached the ears of the medicine cats. _"You have each come here tonight seeking the same answers. What is this sickness and how do we cure it. And I will answer this question with this, you already have the answer. You just don't know it." _

"What?" Brightwillow spluttered. "We do not have the answer. If we did we would not have come here looking for answers!"

_"You each received a prophecy. And you have each pondered over its meaning for the past half a moon. But now you are here, and now you will find your answer." _The blue eyes turned on Graysmoke and he shuddered at their fierceness. It was like looking into the eyes of all of StarClan. _"Tell them what you were told." _

"Frozen Shivers will blanket the Clans, hidden behind a wall of snow that will leave the land barren." He paused and scrunched up his nose. "That was all I was given."

The eyes blinked once before they turned on Jaymask. Graysmoke saw her flinch and suspected that she too was frightened by their ferocity. _"Tell them what you were told." _

Jaymask nodded. "To bring warmth back."

_"Now you," _the voice whispered to Ivyfrost.

She was silent for a few moments before she too spoke the prophecy she had been given, "Follow the sun."

The eyes changed colours and became a pale white, almost blending in the mist. But Graysmoke watched with wonder as the mist changed and became a forest of bright green. Vivid coloured butterflies fluttered from flower to flower and Graysmoke couldn't help but long for the snow to vanish so that he could see this once more. _"Your turn," _he heard the voice whisper and could only presume it was speaking to Brightwillow.

His assumption was proven correct when Brightwillow spoke up. "To where it sinks below the horizon."

Yowls of anguish and suffering clashed over the clearing and Graysmoke fluffed up his fur in fear of what StarClan had planned for the Clans. The silhouette simply stared at the five living cats standing before it with livid white eyes. Graysmoke watched Ivyfrost shrink away from the white eyes as if she had seen them some place before.

Before he could even flinch the green forest vanished and was replaced by a towering waterfall. Brilliant blue water poured over it and splashed into a sparkling lake of water. Gray rocks guarded the waterfall, only broken by a small path that ran up the side. Paw steps littered the path and eyes flashed in the gloom of a cave that sat beside the waterfall.

_"Now combine them all." _

Emberpaw tilted his head. "Frozen Shivers will blanket the Clans, hidden behind a wall of snow that will leave the land barren. To bring warmth back follow the sun to where it sinks below the horizon." His eyes widened in realisation, as did every the eyes of the other medicine cats. "That's it!" the apprentice squeaked. "That's how we find the cure!"

Graysmoke gazed at his apprentice with unmasked pride. It was due time Emberpaw lived up to his role and the elderly medicine cat could see that he had chosen the right kit to be his apprentice.

Again the scenery changed to show the sun sinking below an everlasting lake as it faded away into the distance, framed by sandy red cliffs and screeching white birds. Loud waves crashed into the cliffs and echoed throughout the land.

_"To a place shrouded by mystery…" _

The dream fell to pieces around the medicine cats and they all jerked awake to find themselves back on the snowy bank of MoonCreek. Graysmoke's face fell when he saw all the white fluffy snow surround them and he sighed as he realised that the green forest was so many moons away. But his face perked up again when he remembered that they had solved it.

They knew how to find the cure and he couldn't wait to tell the Clan. Emberpaw jumped up with a cry of happiness. "She gave us the final piece," Graysmoke told the others. "And she helped us complete the puzzle."

"Frozen Shivers will blanket the Clans, hidden behind a wall of snow that will leave the land barren. To bring warmth back follow the sun to where it sinks below the horizon, to a place shrouded by mystery," Ivyfrost meowed, relief plain on her face.

"We did it," Brightwillow murmured. "We're free of the blame."

Graysmoke smiled at the others. "Let's go home."

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**AN: And cue the start of the adventure. **


End file.
